U.S. Pat. No. 2,707,008 which issued in 1955 to Bannister discloses a method and apparatus for harvesting trees using a helicopter. All of the logging operations are controlled from the helicopter, eliminating the need for a ground based logging crew. The Bannister apparatus performed a series of steps sequentially, during which time the helicopter hovered over the tree being harvested. The length of time required to prepare the tree for transport, undermined the financial feasibility of aerial tree harvesting. A form of aerial tree harvesting apparatus using a different concept was developed in Russia and is illustrated in Russian Patent 2,044,458 which issued in 1995.
While helicopters are commonly used in logging operations today, helicopters are merely used as means for transporting logs felled by ground based logging crews. Aerial tree harvesting without the use of ground based felling crews, as envisaged by Bannister, will not become a commercial reality until better aerial tree harvesting apparatus are developed.